The Bet of the Year - Chapter 26
Nov. 13th, 2011 02:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jarnsaxaBeta/Co-Author: The amazing Ca11iope, who once again did a wonderful job ^^ Thank you, dear!
A/N: I have not expected so many readers to comment on Roy’s position last chapter. And honestly, I´m very hooked up by the idea as well :D I´m so going to write something with Ed being on top XD I won´t say if it´s for this fic or when I will be able to write if. But if not for this story, it will be a one-shot ^^ still, I´m curious about your opinion so I opened a little poll in my ff.net profile :D (I just have no clue how long it takes for the things to get uploaded into the profile ^^ So, if it´s not there yet, please try it again later. I´d be happy if you decided to make a vote.)
The results will be displayed once the poll is closed, which will be at the end of December ^^
The Bet of the Year
Chapter 26: Of Librarians and Literature
“Oh my god, brother!” Al slapped his hands over his face, spun on his heel and quickly left the room.
“Shit.” Ed cursed.
Roy had not even registered what was happening, his brain still unable to comprehend anything beyond the pure need he felt. He finally noticed that something was wrong when Edward surged to his feed and stumbled towards the door.
No way!
Roy’s unarticulated cry of anguish was far louder than Ed’s anxious shout for his brother. The blond stopped short at the doorframe and turned around to look at the bound man lying there, then turned around to peer back into the living room, obviously torn between getting to his brother and dealing with his former superior.
The Colonel knew he should be telling the blond to go to his brother. Most likely the younger boy was well beyond shocked, but given the circumstances Roy didn’t really give a damn. As far as the dark haired man was concerned, sweet little Al could burn in hell for interrupting them, and he could stay there until Roy was done fucking his brother’s ass until the man developed a permanent limp. As a warm up. He had done everything in his power to get the brother’s together again, and had succeeded. Didn´t he at least deserve a reward?
And he was hard. Fuck, this was frustration beyond anything he’d ever experienced. He needed to get laid. Roy was positive that his balls would rupture if he didn´t shoot his load soon. Preferably into Ed’s body.
“Get back here!” he ordered, moaning when the general, standing at full attention, twitched, clearly supporting Roy’s demand. Damn, that hurt!
Ed bit his lip, his gaze falling to the Colonel’s erection. The dark haired man struggled to tear his hands from the confines of his former pullover unsuccessfully.
“Come on Ed,“ he pleaded, wincing at his tone. Roy couldn’t remember ever having to beg like this. Hell, this was probably the first time in his life that he’d ever done so. He was just that desperate.
Ed left the kitchen.
The Colonel stared in horror at the empty doorframe.
But not for long.
God, thank you! Yes! Ed came back to kneel beside him. Both of the young man’s hands caressed Roy’s flushed face, tilting it up. Soft lips moved lightly against his.
Shit.
This was an apology.
Edward’s quiet words confirmed it. “I´m sorry, I can´t do this with Al in the next room.”
Roy stared at him, unwilling to believe that Edward was not going to finish this. After another soft kiss, the young man stood up. If he hadn’t been so mind-numbingly aroused, Roy would certainly have understood Ed not wanting to have sex with his brother in the next room. Hell, he had not wanted to masturbate with the younger Elric in the same house. Under the circumstances however, the Colonel was furious. And if Edward wouldn’t finish what he had started . . .
“Release me,” he demanded.
“No.”
Roy blinked. What?
Ed shrugged embarrassed.
“I mean, of course. Just- not yet.”
“You can´t be serious.” This had to be some kind of nightmare.
“Roy, you´re … well. You´re horny.”
“I noticed. And you´re responsible, so do something about it.” Roy could not believe this. He didn´t want to believe this.
Ed cheeks turned a deep red as he tried to explain. “You can´t – fuck!” The older Elric scrubbed his hands over his face, definitely uncomfortable with the situation.
“Yes, I can! I´ll show you just how good I can fuck if you untie me,” Roy interrupted, and Ed once again bit his lower lip.
“Roy.” Ed’s voice took on the tenor of a parent talking to a stubborn child, the tone used when stating unshakeable rules. “There won’t be any fucking with Al present. And no jerking off either. It’s just that, well ...” Ed shook his head, huffed out an exasperated breath and just went for it. “You´re… uhm… pretty loud when you´re getting close...”
“Excuse me?!”
“...and there is no way Al wouldn’t know what you were doing while you were… making those noises,” Ed concluded.
This was so not happening.
“So…” Ed cleared his throat. “I’m thinking maybe we should wait a few minutes before I transmute your shirt back?” he suggested. Roy took some small satisfaction in Edward’s downcast eyes.
“Couldn’t you send Al away? Just for a few minutes?” Roy suggested, determinedly keeping desperation from creeping into his tone.
Ed’s glare was answer enough. He clearly would not even consider sending Al out so the Colonel could have a few minutes in private. Al wasn’t stupid. He would know why he was being sent back out into the night, whatever errand Ed might invent to excuse it. And Ed was still insecure enough about his place in Alphonse’ life that he wouldn´t risk the possibility that the younger Elric might not come back.
And now that the Colonel was regaining his ability to think, he realized that he should have been thanking Alphonse for interrupting. Roy had been seconds away from losing the bet. And it wasn’t over yet, because Ed was right. Having his hands tied was the only thing preventing Roy from finishing himself off, and consequently dooming himself to a full year of tedious paperwork done on time without complaint, matchmaking for Havoc, and dating Maes’ collection of marriageable women.
“I don’t believe this,” Roy murmured as he let his head fall back to thump against the floor.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
When Roy and Ed finally joined Alphonse in the darkened living room, the youngest blond was perched on the edge of the big arm chair’s seat, hands clasped between his knees. Roy and Ed were both fully clothed when they sat down across from him, but the teen avoided looking at the dark haired man nevertheless. Worse, whenever Roy so much as glanced in his direction, the young man’s face darkened to such a deep shade of red that the Colonel wondered if there was enough blood left in the rest of his body to keep him conscious.
But to be perfectly honest, Roy was fine with Al not looking at him.
The whole scenario was far beyond the highest level of awkward Roy had ever experienced – and Central’s premier Casanova had been in plenty of embarrassing situations. He was no blushing virgin. Far from it. An outrageously large number of people – mainly women – had seen him naked and aroused. But to be caught in that state by his almost lover’s younger brother intensified the Colonel’s mortification enormously.
The silence in the living room was stifling. Just to be doing something, Roy had brought a pitcher of water to fill the glasses on the tray. Both brothers had immediately downed them, probably wishing for something much stronger. Neither Elric had the slightest idea how to address the issue at hand, so, as the adult, the Colonel gritted his teeth and took the initiative.
“Look, Al…” Roy started. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you walked into that.”
Alphonse looked up for all of three seconds, before his head dipped to stare into the empty glass again.
“I know this has probably been quite a shock for you,” Roy tried. Way to understate the situation.
No reaction.
Ed finally acknowledges that he should say something. “Uhm… this isn’t exactly how I wanted you to find out that I’m ... into guys, Al,” he said.
Roy had the sudden desire to smack the idiot next to him as the younger Elric hacked out a laugh that sounded disturbingly close to a sob.
“Believe it or not, brother, I already noticed that,” the blushing teen told him.
The sudden burst of amusement drowned when the boy’s gaze went from his brother to the Colonel. Al quickly looked back to his brother.
“And no, not just now. Brother, I’ve seen you staring at the Colonel’s... uhm… backside...more than once. And I’ve seen him staring at yours too. I already knew he wanted to do … that…with you.” Al’s voice sounded a bit shrill by the end of that little speech, but the young man caught himself before going on. “I just wasn’t expecting you to go at it in the kitchen! Brother, the kitchen! You cook in there! That’s ... that’s... not very hygienic.” Al concluded, rather weakly Roy thought.
But now that he’d started, the floodgates opened and the youngest Elric warmed up to his rant.
“And I thought you were mad at the Colonel!” he continued. “I wasn’t even gone for a whole hour! How could you go from ‘I want to kill that Bastard!’ to .... to ... fucking on the kitchen floor?”
Roy shouldn’t have been so mortified to hear Alphonse Elric use the word ‘fucking’, but damn it if wasn’t weird. Like some kind of fairy tale prince talking dirty. But it also reminded Roy that Al had no idea that this was not the first time he and Ed had made out. From Alphonse’ point of view this whole thing was terribly sudden. No wonder the boy had thought Roy’s moans were the result of violence, and had rushed into the kitchen expecting to break up a fight.
“Brother, please tell me you´re not that easy,” Alphonse pleaded.
The older sibling, face still aflame, shot his almost lover a wary glance when Roy let out a suspicious cough. Trying his best to keep smug comments about how no one could resist the Mustang charm to himself, Roy schooled his features to neutrality. Ed had been far from easy, considering how long it took him to let Roy get close, but yes, Roy felt he had every right to be smug about that.
Having received no answer, Al sighed and continued. “I’ve heard that the Colonel is about as hard to get as a street walker.”
“Uhm…” Roy blinked and was about to object to that comparison, but found that he couldn’t. He wasn’t exactly sure how to explain that he wasn´t easy either. Well, at least not that easy. Not anymore.
Ed just sat there, biting his lip hard as he tried to suppress the sudden urge to laugh.
But Al still wasn’t finished. “Have you even considered all the… stuff you could catch from taking… that into your mouth?” Al ranted on.
Feeling his face aflame, the Colonel buried it in his hands for a moment before he looked at Edward. Who also appeared at a loss for words. This was worse than any sex talk with a parent.
“Did you even think to ask the Colonel if he’d seen a doctor recently? I mean, with the promiscuous lifestyle he leads, he should have regular checkups just to make sure he doesn´t spread some nasty social disease around.”
Okay, that was going too far.
“I assure you, Alphonse, your concern for your brother’s health is not necessary. I do in fact get regular checkups, no matter what happens in between them,” Roy stated in a sour tone of voice.
Al had the decency to look contrite. He glanced at the empty water pitcher, picked it up and went to refill it. Roy suspected the teen needed an excuse to avoid looking at Roy, feeling guilty about making those callous comments no doubt.
“And your other concerns is quite unnecessary as well,” Roy told him when he returned and began filling the water glasses. “I´m actually not spending very much time dating these days.” Thanks to the bet. “I’ve become more involved with academic pursuits.” Al didn´t have to look so skeptical. “Instead, I spend a considerable amount of my spare time doing alchemic research – and incidentally feeding your brother.”
Roy shot a smirk in Edward’s direction, a thinly veiled attempt to shift Al’s attention there as well. All he got for his troubles however was a disgruntled pout from the older blond. An adorably disgruntled pout. Not that Roy would ever considered using the term ‘adorable’ in connection with his former subordinate. At least not out loud where the young man’s could hear him.
Al’s attention remained firmly on the Colonel, and he appeared to have gotten over his inability to look the dark haired man in the eye. His embarrassment over what he had witnessed earlier in the kitchen was now replaced by a considerable measure of remorse. The younger Elric’s rant had likely been his unusual way of coping with the situation, but he must have suddenly realized that he had more or less called the Colonel a whore.
Sitting back down in the armchair, the youngster clasped his hands around his glass of water and sighed. “I´m sorry, Sir,” the young man said quietly. “I didn´t mean to be so blunt. That was terribly rude.”
Roy sighed in defeat and the older blond beside him chuckled. Ed had also noted what his brother had said – and had not said. Al had not retracted his opinion of the Colonel’s reputation. He had simply apologized for his rudeness.
“So… you´re fine with this?” Edward asked, in disbelief tinted with hope.
“I...guess so,” the teen said with some reluctance, smiling awkwardly.
Alphonse took a sip of his water. Roy, thinking the worst was over, took a swallow of his as well.
“But I certainly never expected the Colonel to be the girl in this.” Al offered.
Roy did his best not to spew his water all over Alphonse, but it took several minutes before he was able to get over his coughing fit and breathe normally again. Having Ed between his legs did not make him the girl. Or even the submissive partner. Edward had been about to suck his dick, damn it. Emphasis on the dick. Roy Mustang, decorated Flame Colonel, Hero of Ishbal, was not a girl! Ed’s poorly suppressed chuckles were annoying in the extreme.
Until they stopped abruptly.
“Wait, you thought I would be the girl?”
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Maes set the phone down.
He had found out a few very interesting things, and had to adjust his opinion regarding the older Elric, but had been unable to uncover anything to shed light on where Edward might have picked up skills in interrogation defense. There really was only one source of information left.
And that one was off limits – Edward himself. Maes had no idea where Ed had been for the two years he’d been missing, but if that was where he had picked up the techniques necessary to so easily evade the interrogation methods of a seasoned pro, it couldn´t have been a very nice place. The only way the young man could have gotten this good this fast was in desperate circumstances, possibly even life-threatening situations. Which fit with the changes Maes had observed in the young alchemist. Edward had developed an astonishing amount of distrust, even towards people Maes was sure he considered friends.
However, there were still things a good interrogator could learn about the person he was questioning. Even when that person did not answer a single question, one´s body did. Reactions might be faint and suppressed, but were always there. And Maes Hughes would never have been in the position he was now if he weren´t a master at reading body language.
Thinking back to his dinner meeting with Edward, Maes leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes in concentration. Certain topics had made the man young man tense, though the betrayal of his body had been almost unnoticeable. Ed had done his best to contain them, but it was effectively impossible to suppress them completely. To the best of Maes recollection, there were two main topics of conversation that stressed Edward enough that his body language betrayed him.
Romantic relationships were one. The young man became extremely close lipped whenever the conversation turned in that direction. Maes had hinted that he knew about Ed and Roy to gauge the younger man’s reaction, so Ed was aware of this. Maes was also fairly certain that the older Elric did not know about the bet, so the young man had to assume that Roy told Maes about them. The Investigations officer sincerely hoped that Edward had not found out about the spy he had arranged to take photos of them. The former State Alchemist was distrustful enough as it was.
But since Edward was aware that Maes knew about his and Roy’s newly discovered attraction to each other, it should have been relatively easy for Maes to pry out at least some information about the progress Ed was making in getting Roy into his bed. It hadn’t been. And the young blond had been equally tight lipped about possible former lovers as well.
Maes tilted his chair back and folded his hands across his chest with a sigh. It would probably take considerable time to earn this new, more suspicious Ed’s trust, but the Lieutenant Colonel was confident that he could eventually do so. And it wasn’t so much a matter of professional pride, as a legitimate concern for Edward’s wellbeing. The former Fullmetal Alchemist seemed to have isolated himself, and that was not healthy behavior for a talented and intelligent young person. Ed had spent two long years trying to get home, and Maes would be damned if he allowed the young man to shut himself away from the world, literally or figuratively, now that he was.
Ed’s whereabouts during those two years had also been a stressful topic of conversation for the young man, Maes recalled. Edward had not been willing to offer any information whatsoever about where he had been, and no amount of prying, subtle or blatant, had changed that. As long as Ed had a choice in this, he would not say a word. At least, that´s what his body language said.
But he had spoken about it. To Roy.
There weren´t too many conclusions to be drawn from this.
And Maes didn´t like a single one.
Chapter 26 Part 2
A/N: I have not expected so many readers to comment on Roy’s position last chapter. And honestly, I´m very hooked up by the idea as well :D I´m so going to write something with Ed being on top XD I won´t say if it´s for this fic or when I will be able to write if. But if not for this story, it will be a one-shot ^^ still, I´m curious about your opinion so I opened a little poll in my ff.net profile :D (I just have no clue how long it takes for the things to get uploaded into the profile ^^ So, if it´s not there yet, please try it again later. I´d be happy if you decided to make a vote.)
The results will be displayed once the poll is closed, which will be at the end of December ^^
The Bet of the Year
Chapter 26: Of Librarians and Literature
“Oh my god, brother!” Al slapped his hands over his face, spun on his heel and quickly left the room.
“Shit.” Ed cursed.
Roy had not even registered what was happening, his brain still unable to comprehend anything beyond the pure need he felt. He finally noticed that something was wrong when Edward surged to his feed and stumbled towards the door.
No way!
Roy’s unarticulated cry of anguish was far louder than Ed’s anxious shout for his brother. The blond stopped short at the doorframe and turned around to look at the bound man lying there, then turned around to peer back into the living room, obviously torn between getting to his brother and dealing with his former superior.
The Colonel knew he should be telling the blond to go to his brother. Most likely the younger boy was well beyond shocked, but given the circumstances Roy didn’t really give a damn. As far as the dark haired man was concerned, sweet little Al could burn in hell for interrupting them, and he could stay there until Roy was done fucking his brother’s ass until the man developed a permanent limp. As a warm up. He had done everything in his power to get the brother’s together again, and had succeeded. Didn´t he at least deserve a reward?
And he was hard. Fuck, this was frustration beyond anything he’d ever experienced. He needed to get laid. Roy was positive that his balls would rupture if he didn´t shoot his load soon. Preferably into Ed’s body.
“Get back here!” he ordered, moaning when the general, standing at full attention, twitched, clearly supporting Roy’s demand. Damn, that hurt!
Ed bit his lip, his gaze falling to the Colonel’s erection. The dark haired man struggled to tear his hands from the confines of his former pullover unsuccessfully.
“Come on Ed,“ he pleaded, wincing at his tone. Roy couldn’t remember ever having to beg like this. Hell, this was probably the first time in his life that he’d ever done so. He was just that desperate.
Ed left the kitchen.
The Colonel stared in horror at the empty doorframe.
But not for long.
God, thank you! Yes! Ed came back to kneel beside him. Both of the young man’s hands caressed Roy’s flushed face, tilting it up. Soft lips moved lightly against his.
Shit.
This was an apology.
Edward’s quiet words confirmed it. “I´m sorry, I can´t do this with Al in the next room.”
Roy stared at him, unwilling to believe that Edward was not going to finish this. After another soft kiss, the young man stood up. If he hadn’t been so mind-numbingly aroused, Roy would certainly have understood Ed not wanting to have sex with his brother in the next room. Hell, he had not wanted to masturbate with the younger Elric in the same house. Under the circumstances however, the Colonel was furious. And if Edward wouldn’t finish what he had started . . .
“Release me,” he demanded.
“No.”
Roy blinked. What?
Ed shrugged embarrassed.
“I mean, of course. Just- not yet.”
“You can´t be serious.” This had to be some kind of nightmare.
“Roy, you´re … well. You´re horny.”
“I noticed. And you´re responsible, so do something about it.” Roy could not believe this. He didn´t want to believe this.
Ed cheeks turned a deep red as he tried to explain. “You can´t – fuck!” The older Elric scrubbed his hands over his face, definitely uncomfortable with the situation.
“Yes, I can! I´ll show you just how good I can fuck if you untie me,” Roy interrupted, and Ed once again bit his lower lip.
“Roy.” Ed’s voice took on the tenor of a parent talking to a stubborn child, the tone used when stating unshakeable rules. “There won’t be any fucking with Al present. And no jerking off either. It’s just that, well ...” Ed shook his head, huffed out an exasperated breath and just went for it. “You´re… uhm… pretty loud when you´re getting close...”
“Excuse me?!”
“...and there is no way Al wouldn’t know what you were doing while you were… making those noises,” Ed concluded.
This was so not happening.
“So…” Ed cleared his throat. “I’m thinking maybe we should wait a few minutes before I transmute your shirt back?” he suggested. Roy took some small satisfaction in Edward’s downcast eyes.
“Couldn’t you send Al away? Just for a few minutes?” Roy suggested, determinedly keeping desperation from creeping into his tone.
Ed’s glare was answer enough. He clearly would not even consider sending Al out so the Colonel could have a few minutes in private. Al wasn’t stupid. He would know why he was being sent back out into the night, whatever errand Ed might invent to excuse it. And Ed was still insecure enough about his place in Alphonse’ life that he wouldn´t risk the possibility that the younger Elric might not come back.
And now that the Colonel was regaining his ability to think, he realized that he should have been thanking Alphonse for interrupting. Roy had been seconds away from losing the bet. And it wasn’t over yet, because Ed was right. Having his hands tied was the only thing preventing Roy from finishing himself off, and consequently dooming himself to a full year of tedious paperwork done on time without complaint, matchmaking for Havoc, and dating Maes’ collection of marriageable women.
“I don’t believe this,” Roy murmured as he let his head fall back to thump against the floor.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
When Roy and Ed finally joined Alphonse in the darkened living room, the youngest blond was perched on the edge of the big arm chair’s seat, hands clasped between his knees. Roy and Ed were both fully clothed when they sat down across from him, but the teen avoided looking at the dark haired man nevertheless. Worse, whenever Roy so much as glanced in his direction, the young man’s face darkened to such a deep shade of red that the Colonel wondered if there was enough blood left in the rest of his body to keep him conscious.
But to be perfectly honest, Roy was fine with Al not looking at him.
The whole scenario was far beyond the highest level of awkward Roy had ever experienced – and Central’s premier Casanova had been in plenty of embarrassing situations. He was no blushing virgin. Far from it. An outrageously large number of people – mainly women – had seen him naked and aroused. But to be caught in that state by his almost lover’s younger brother intensified the Colonel’s mortification enormously.
The silence in the living room was stifling. Just to be doing something, Roy had brought a pitcher of water to fill the glasses on the tray. Both brothers had immediately downed them, probably wishing for something much stronger. Neither Elric had the slightest idea how to address the issue at hand, so, as the adult, the Colonel gritted his teeth and took the initiative.
“Look, Al…” Roy started. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you walked into that.”
Alphonse looked up for all of three seconds, before his head dipped to stare into the empty glass again.
“I know this has probably been quite a shock for you,” Roy tried. Way to understate the situation.
No reaction.
Ed finally acknowledges that he should say something. “Uhm… this isn’t exactly how I wanted you to find out that I’m ... into guys, Al,” he said.
Roy had the sudden desire to smack the idiot next to him as the younger Elric hacked out a laugh that sounded disturbingly close to a sob.
“Believe it or not, brother, I already noticed that,” the blushing teen told him.
The sudden burst of amusement drowned when the boy’s gaze went from his brother to the Colonel. Al quickly looked back to his brother.
“And no, not just now. Brother, I’ve seen you staring at the Colonel’s... uhm… backside...more than once. And I’ve seen him staring at yours too. I already knew he wanted to do … that…with you.” Al’s voice sounded a bit shrill by the end of that little speech, but the young man caught himself before going on. “I just wasn’t expecting you to go at it in the kitchen! Brother, the kitchen! You cook in there! That’s ... that’s... not very hygienic.” Al concluded, rather weakly Roy thought.
But now that he’d started, the floodgates opened and the youngest Elric warmed up to his rant.
“And I thought you were mad at the Colonel!” he continued. “I wasn’t even gone for a whole hour! How could you go from ‘I want to kill that Bastard!’ to .... to ... fucking on the kitchen floor?”
Roy shouldn’t have been so mortified to hear Alphonse Elric use the word ‘fucking’, but damn it if wasn’t weird. Like some kind of fairy tale prince talking dirty. But it also reminded Roy that Al had no idea that this was not the first time he and Ed had made out. From Alphonse’ point of view this whole thing was terribly sudden. No wonder the boy had thought Roy’s moans were the result of violence, and had rushed into the kitchen expecting to break up a fight.
“Brother, please tell me you´re not that easy,” Alphonse pleaded.
The older sibling, face still aflame, shot his almost lover a wary glance when Roy let out a suspicious cough. Trying his best to keep smug comments about how no one could resist the Mustang charm to himself, Roy schooled his features to neutrality. Ed had been far from easy, considering how long it took him to let Roy get close, but yes, Roy felt he had every right to be smug about that.
Having received no answer, Al sighed and continued. “I’ve heard that the Colonel is about as hard to get as a street walker.”
“Uhm…” Roy blinked and was about to object to that comparison, but found that he couldn’t. He wasn’t exactly sure how to explain that he wasn´t easy either. Well, at least not that easy. Not anymore.
Ed just sat there, biting his lip hard as he tried to suppress the sudden urge to laugh.
But Al still wasn’t finished. “Have you even considered all the… stuff you could catch from taking… that into your mouth?” Al ranted on.
Feeling his face aflame, the Colonel buried it in his hands for a moment before he looked at Edward. Who also appeared at a loss for words. This was worse than any sex talk with a parent.
“Did you even think to ask the Colonel if he’d seen a doctor recently? I mean, with the promiscuous lifestyle he leads, he should have regular checkups just to make sure he doesn´t spread some nasty social disease around.”
Okay, that was going too far.
“I assure you, Alphonse, your concern for your brother’s health is not necessary. I do in fact get regular checkups, no matter what happens in between them,” Roy stated in a sour tone of voice.
Al had the decency to look contrite. He glanced at the empty water pitcher, picked it up and went to refill it. Roy suspected the teen needed an excuse to avoid looking at Roy, feeling guilty about making those callous comments no doubt.
“And your other concerns is quite unnecessary as well,” Roy told him when he returned and began filling the water glasses. “I´m actually not spending very much time dating these days.” Thanks to the bet. “I’ve become more involved with academic pursuits.” Al didn´t have to look so skeptical. “Instead, I spend a considerable amount of my spare time doing alchemic research – and incidentally feeding your brother.”
Roy shot a smirk in Edward’s direction, a thinly veiled attempt to shift Al’s attention there as well. All he got for his troubles however was a disgruntled pout from the older blond. An adorably disgruntled pout. Not that Roy would ever considered using the term ‘adorable’ in connection with his former subordinate. At least not out loud where the young man’s could hear him.
Al’s attention remained firmly on the Colonel, and he appeared to have gotten over his inability to look the dark haired man in the eye. His embarrassment over what he had witnessed earlier in the kitchen was now replaced by a considerable measure of remorse. The younger Elric’s rant had likely been his unusual way of coping with the situation, but he must have suddenly realized that he had more or less called the Colonel a whore.
Sitting back down in the armchair, the youngster clasped his hands around his glass of water and sighed. “I´m sorry, Sir,” the young man said quietly. “I didn´t mean to be so blunt. That was terribly rude.”
Roy sighed in defeat and the older blond beside him chuckled. Ed had also noted what his brother had said – and had not said. Al had not retracted his opinion of the Colonel’s reputation. He had simply apologized for his rudeness.
“So… you´re fine with this?” Edward asked, in disbelief tinted with hope.
“I...guess so,” the teen said with some reluctance, smiling awkwardly.
Alphonse took a sip of his water. Roy, thinking the worst was over, took a swallow of his as well.
“But I certainly never expected the Colonel to be the girl in this.” Al offered.
Roy did his best not to spew his water all over Alphonse, but it took several minutes before he was able to get over his coughing fit and breathe normally again. Having Ed between his legs did not make him the girl. Or even the submissive partner. Edward had been about to suck his dick, damn it. Emphasis on the dick. Roy Mustang, decorated Flame Colonel, Hero of Ishbal, was not a girl! Ed’s poorly suppressed chuckles were annoying in the extreme.
Until they stopped abruptly.
“Wait, you thought I would be the girl?”
-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Maes set the phone down.
He had found out a few very interesting things, and had to adjust his opinion regarding the older Elric, but had been unable to uncover anything to shed light on where Edward might have picked up skills in interrogation defense. There really was only one source of information left.
And that one was off limits – Edward himself. Maes had no idea where Ed had been for the two years he’d been missing, but if that was where he had picked up the techniques necessary to so easily evade the interrogation methods of a seasoned pro, it couldn´t have been a very nice place. The only way the young man could have gotten this good this fast was in desperate circumstances, possibly even life-threatening situations. Which fit with the changes Maes had observed in the young alchemist. Edward had developed an astonishing amount of distrust, even towards people Maes was sure he considered friends.
However, there were still things a good interrogator could learn about the person he was questioning. Even when that person did not answer a single question, one´s body did. Reactions might be faint and suppressed, but were always there. And Maes Hughes would never have been in the position he was now if he weren´t a master at reading body language.
Thinking back to his dinner meeting with Edward, Maes leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes in concentration. Certain topics had made the man young man tense, though the betrayal of his body had been almost unnoticeable. Ed had done his best to contain them, but it was effectively impossible to suppress them completely. To the best of Maes recollection, there were two main topics of conversation that stressed Edward enough that his body language betrayed him.
Romantic relationships were one. The young man became extremely close lipped whenever the conversation turned in that direction. Maes had hinted that he knew about Ed and Roy to gauge the younger man’s reaction, so Ed was aware of this. Maes was also fairly certain that the older Elric did not know about the bet, so the young man had to assume that Roy told Maes about them. The Investigations officer sincerely hoped that Edward had not found out about the spy he had arranged to take photos of them. The former State Alchemist was distrustful enough as it was.
But since Edward was aware that Maes knew about his and Roy’s newly discovered attraction to each other, it should have been relatively easy for Maes to pry out at least some information about the progress Ed was making in getting Roy into his bed. It hadn’t been. And the young blond had been equally tight lipped about possible former lovers as well.
Maes tilted his chair back and folded his hands across his chest with a sigh. It would probably take considerable time to earn this new, more suspicious Ed’s trust, but the Lieutenant Colonel was confident that he could eventually do so. And it wasn’t so much a matter of professional pride, as a legitimate concern for Edward’s wellbeing. The former Fullmetal Alchemist seemed to have isolated himself, and that was not healthy behavior for a talented and intelligent young person. Ed had spent two long years trying to get home, and Maes would be damned if he allowed the young man to shut himself away from the world, literally or figuratively, now that he was.
Ed’s whereabouts during those two years had also been a stressful topic of conversation for the young man, Maes recalled. Edward had not been willing to offer any information whatsoever about where he had been, and no amount of prying, subtle or blatant, had changed that. As long as Ed had a choice in this, he would not say a word. At least, that´s what his body language said.
But he had spoken about it. To Roy.
There weren´t too many conclusions to be drawn from this.
And Maes didn´t like a single one.
Chapter 26 Part 2
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Date: 2011-11-27 04:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-12-30 01:04 pm (UTC)